Foothills Sentry March 2020

Foothills Sentry Page 4 March 2020 "Fate" continued from page 1 The historic Orange May Pa- rade, resurrected last year by the Chamber of Commerce, will re- turn to Old Towne on Sat., May 2. This year’s theme, “Growing Our Founders’ Vision,” is a nod to the city’s agricultural roots and its vision for 2020. Sponsorships, ranging from $500 (patron) to $20,000 (distin- guished presenter), are available. All sponsors may participate in the parade. Community groups, schools and businesses are also welcome. Applications are due April 2. The parade will commence at 10 a.m., beginning at Shaffer and Chapman, proceeding west around the Plaza, and continuing south on Glassell to Almond. For sponsorship or entry in- formation, contact parade co- ordinator Elizabeth Holloman at wholloman@socal.rr.com or (714) 269-4589. Orange Chamber's plans for May Parade unfold “Anything other than putting this on the ballot would not be right,” Mayor Mark Murphy de- clared. “People were told they could vote on this.” Prior to the council’s unani- mous vote to ballotize the issue in November, several of the citi- zens who had gathered signatures for the referendum shared their experiences with the council, and reminded them of the site’s long and controversial history. “Your vote to approve Milan’s development triggered a city- wide protest,” David Hillman reported, citing conversations he had with citizens when collect- ing signatures. “Everybody had questions, they wanted more in- formation,” he said. One couple invited him in for dinner so they could continue talking. History repeats Orange resident Theresa Sears recalled previous failed attempts to develop the property, the mis- takes made along the way and the council’s seeming inability to learn from history. There was the Fieldstone project in 2003. The council approved it, residents launched a referendum opposing it and the council reversed itself. The Ridgeline property across the street also generated a ref- erendum when the council ap- proved 39 homes to replace recreation-use zoning. Placed on the ballot in 2012, citizens overturned the council’s deci- sion. The council ignored the vote, residents sued and the case eventually wound up in the state Supreme Court, which found for the citizens. A 400-plus-unit project on the Sully-Miller site was rejected by the planning commission, and then the council itself, in 2014. “I’ve learned a lot over these past 20 years,” Sears said to the council. “What have you learned?” Assistance League of Orange will host its annual Salute to Ser- vice program, a night of recog- nition for local graduating high school seniors who will be en- tering military service following commencement. The event, for the seniors and their families, will be held at the Chapter House in Orange, beginning at 4:30 p.m. on Wed., May 13. Students who wish to be included in this patriot- ic ceremony should contact their school counselor or coordinator Dani Kavanaugh at kavanaugh- dani@aol.com. Newmilitary recruits to be feted At the Feb. 11 council meeting, Barnes was the swing vote that stopped the project from moving forward. “I said nothing at the first reading because I believed the document (EIR) addressed those fears,” she said. “However, when residents keep showing up, citing the same concerns and sharing the view that the process is unfair, then it is clear we are not offering assurance to residents who trust us to make decisions that impact our long-term quality of life.” Mayor Harry Sidhu and Coun- cilmember Jose Moreno also voted against the rezoning. The mayor told council, “The Serra- no Center continues to serve the community. It is a strong support for families and neighbors. This is not the right project, the right place, the right time. So I con- tinue to stand with the families around Serrano.” Said Councilmember Moreno, “When an ENTIRE community comes out and says you are going to do damage to our community, you have to listen.” When one community member from another district told council that it was not fair to approve housing in her district and reject it in another, several from other districts said they supported Anaheim Hills residents. Councilmember More- no commented, “This could be a uniting moment for us.” Selective hearing Councilmembers Jordan Brandman, Lucille Kring and Mayor Pro Tem Stephen Faessel voted in favor of the rezoning. Kring told the audience she was “a property rights person” and used her allotted five minutes to read responses from the property owner. Councilmember Trevor O’Neil, Anaheim Hills’ repre- sentative, recused himself from voting, because he opposed the project at the October planning commission meeting. Accord- ing to campaign finance reports, Faessel accepted $1,000 in con- tributions in 2019 from property owner Saunders. “Councilmembers were being misled,” said Bill Leming, refer- ring to the Residences at Nohl Ranch proposed project. “The owner was claiming this is an un- derutilized center, which couldn’t be further from the truth.” Lem- ing is president of a new non- profit group, Citizen Advocates for Responsible Development or CARD. A growing concern The group recently merged with Anaheim Citizens for Sen- sible Development because Lem- ing says they wanted to broaden their reach. “This issue of devel- opers coming into our communi- ties and demanding changes to our general plans in not isolated to Anaheim,” said Leming. “We’re in favor of well-planned development, just not the kind that threatens to destroy what makes our communities unique and special.” While Leming applauded council’s action to deny the zone change, he said the group’s legal counsel warned that its earlier action to certify the EIR threat- ened to take away residents’ fu- ture rights to file a lawsuit. “We are hopeful that council will fol- low through with its intent to put things back to the way they were,” Leming said, “but the law only gives us 30 days, and we couldn’t take that risk.” He says the group plans to pursue legal action. The group launched a successful fundrais- ing drive for a legal fund, raising more than $11,000 in just four days. “This was a true grassroots effort,” he said, "with people giving what they could afford. For some, that was $25. It goes to show you can do great things when an entire community is en- gaged.” The reversal of the zone change and general plan amendment must be added to a future coun- cil agenda. It must first go back to the planning commission, which is likely in late March. "Anaheim" continued from page 1